Before the complete withdrawal of its troops, the United States plans to evacuate Afghans who worked with the American forces as interpreters.
The United States plans to evacuate, before the complete withdrawal of its troops from Afghanistan, Afghans who have worked with the American forces as interpreters and who fear reprisals, said Thursday a senior official on condition of anonymity.
The objective of this evacuation out of Afghanistan is that the persons concerned are safe during the period of examination of their immigration visa application.
“We have identified a group of SIV (Special Immigrant Visas) applicants who have been interpreters and who will be relocated outside of Afghanistan before the end of the troop withdrawal (…) in order to complete the process of visa application, “said the official.
Neither the number of people concerned nor their destination have been specified.
“We will not abandon those who have helped us,” said Joe Biden, questioned on the subject at a press conference at the White House.
Asked about the countries that could temporarily accommodate these interpreters, he replied: “I don’t know”.
An extremely long procedure
Some 18,000 Afghans who have worked with US forces, including as interpreters, hope to land an immigration visa to the United States, fearing reprisals if the Taliban return to power in Kabul.
But the procedure is extremely long and they risk finding themselves stranded in Kabul without a visa if the Afghan government collapses soon after the departure of foreign troops.
Many congressional officials and human rights organizations are urging the Biden administration to evacuate Afghans whose cases are pending to the island of Guam in the Pacific.
The Pentagon has signaled for several weeks that it has initiated preparations for a mass evacuation which could, if necessary, slow down the total withdrawal of US forces from the country.
Joe Biden ordered in April the departure of the 2,500 soldiers still present in Afghanistan by September 11, the anniversary of the 2001 attacks that had caused the American invasion of the country.
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